Tips for Starting a Music-Based Nonprofit

If you’ve dreamed of sharing music with others or see a need in your community that is unfulfilled, then you might consider starting a music-based nonprofit. When you take the time to create a not-for-profit organization, you’ll be able to accept tax-deductible donations and may be eligible for grants to fund the program. But starting a nonprofit isn’t easy, so be sure to review these tips before beginning the process. 

Think About the Need Your Nonprofit Will Fulfill

Your not-for-profit (nonprofit) will need a mission and a purpose. Maybe there’s a cause that’s already close to your heart, like finding ways to support the mental health of musicians living on the road, or bringing music programs into low-income school districts where students otherwise wouldn’t have a chance to learn music. When you start thinking about it, there are countless ways that you could contribute to music education, alone. 

But don’t stop there. Think about the many ways that music can contribute to mental health, as well as physical health, and how you can harness that power to help people. Underserved populations, like veterans, can benefit from music therapy, and your nonprofit might focus on developing programs that provide that type of therapy and access to these populations. 

Don’t be afraid to look at existing music nonprofits for inspiration. For instance, the Boise Hive offers a sober practice facility to local musicians. The program also makes referrals to mental health counseling and hosts group meetings, ensuring that musicians receive mental health support. It’s a central and important element of Boise’s unique music scene and provides important, often overlooked services to musicians. 

Musicians On Call is another great example of a nonprofit doing wonderful work with music. This organization facilitates bedside concerts in healthcare facilities, bringing music to patients who can’t leave their beds while bringing some joy into each room at the same time. 

Approach the Nonprofit Like a Business

When you start a not-for-profit, you’ll face many obstacles, just like you would when starting a business. Be prepared to invest lots of time in outlining your mission and in planning your programs. You’ll need to research the need for the programs, gather data to identify and build information on the problem you’re setting out to solve and get creative in designing programs that can help with that problem. 

Securing financing is often a significant challenge for not-for-profits. It’s a common misconception that you can fund a startup nonprofit with grant money, or that donations will start to pour in once people hear about your mission. In reality, you’ll need funding to get your operation up and running, and you shouldn’t count on being able to bring in grant money for at least the first two years of operation. Instead, you’ll need to create a detailed budget and determine ways to get your nonprofit operating on the funding that you do have. This may mean that you need to save up money of your own or ask friends and family if they’re willing to donate. Get creative, too – holding a benefit concert might be an ideal way to kick off the nonprofit’s launch while building up some funding and developing community awareness, too. 

Just like starting a business, things can become unpredictable with your not-for-profit. As much work you put into planning and outlining programs and finances, things are always bound to change and you’ll need to deal with unexpected obstacles. Adopting flexibility and being prepared to reevaluate and redesign your programs will be important to your success. 

Surround Yourself With the Right People

Starting a not-for-profit isn’t easy, and you’ll want to approach the process with a deliberate plan so that you can take the right steps to build your program. Before you get too far along in the process, you’ll need to find some people who can help you. This support team will be integral to not only launching the nonprofit but also to its success. 

To start, try to find a mentor who has gone through the process of creating a nonprofit before. They’ll act as a valuable resource, a voice of wisdom, and even as your cheerleader. An experienced nonprofit executive director can give you insight into the nuances of the process of forming the entity and of the challenges you’ll face in running it. 

But you’ll need additional help. A good lawyer and an accountant are a must in keeping the operation legal and in good financial standings. You’ll also need to build a board of directors. This is a process that can take time since you’ll need to find a team of talented, highly qualified people who can help to guide and oversee the nonprofit’s mission. Once you have your board created, though, you’ll have a valuable team that you can turn to for help and insight. 

Creating a not-for-profit will be a challenge, and much like starting a business, it will require a financial and emotional investment. However, with your new music operation, you’ll be able to change lives, and that can make everything you’ve gone through more than worth it. 

Courtesy of Indiana Lee.